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Jet Black and the Ninja Wind

**Winner of the 2013-2014 Asian/Pacific American Award for Young Adult Literature****2015 Sakura Medal Nominee****Shortlisted for the 2014 SCBWI Crystal Kite Award****Nominated for the Cybils Young Adult Bloggers Literary Award**

Seventeen-year-old Jet Black is a ninja. There's only one problem—she doesn't know it.

Jet has never lived a so-called normal life. Raised by her single Japanese mother on a Navajo reservation in the Southwest, Jet's life was a constant litany of mysterious physical and mental training. For as long as Jet can remember, every Saturday night she and her mother played "the game" on the local mountain. But this time, Jet is fighting for her life. And at the end of the night, her mother dies and Jet finds herself an orphan—and in mortal danger.

Fulfilling her mother's dying wish, Jet flies to Japan to live with her grandfather, where she discovers she is the only one who can protect a family treasure hidden in her ancestral land. She's terrified, but if Jet won't fight to protect her world, who will? Stalked by bounty hunters and desperately attracted with the man who's been sent to kill her, Jet must be strong enough to protect the treasure, preserve an ancient culture and save a sacred mountain from destruction.

In Jet Black and the Ninja Wind, multiple award-winning author, poet and translator team Leza Lowitz and Shogo Oketani make their first foray into young adult fiction with a compulsively readable tale whose teenage heroine must discover if she can put the blade above the heart—or die trying.

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Praise

"Adventure, fantasy, ancient wisdom, and imminent danger—Jet Black meets them all head on. Like the Hunger Game's Katniss Everdeen, she is a fighter with heart. A new teen hero has arrived." —Barry Lancet, author of Japantown

"Adventure, fantasy, ancient wisdom, and imminent danger—Jet Black meets them all head on. Like the Hunger Game's Katniss Everdeen, she is a fighter with heart. A new teen hero has arrived." —Barry Lancet, author of Japantown

"How wonderful to find such a story of inspiration as Jet Black and the Ninja Wind, revealing how heroism can be born even from roots in confusion and self-doubt. Enjoy the read and then let Jet Black's story inspire you to ride your wind as she did hers. Find your gift. Live your promise." —Stephen K. Hayes, Black Belt Hall of Fame, author of The Ninja and Their Secret Fighting Art and The Ninja Defense

"In this meticulously researched adventure, the husband-and-wife team of Oketani and Lowitz evoke the atmosphere and richness of Japanese culture and mythology, delving into the lore of the ninja. The physical descriptions are lush, the action sequences almost cinematic, and the details are steeped in authenticity." —Publishers Weekly

"Action, adventure, and artistry join forces in this enthralling story of a teen girl descended from ninjas. Jet Black's quest to find a hidden treasure, and to save her ancestors' history and homeland, takes her on a heart-pounding journey from New Mexico to Japan. Along the way she uncovers layers of history and family secrets, and discovers how to use ninjutsu to survive. Readers will cheer for this refreshingly original action heroine as she travels across cultures and into her heart to find hidden treasures of her own: power, courage, and family." —Diana Renn, author of Tokyo Heist

"It's already won numerous awards—and it's easy to see why. With its taste for action and adventure tempered by historical and cultural insights, a powerfully-drawn protagonist whose motivations and concerns are clearly inspected, and a story line replete with 'bigger picture' world concerns, Jet Black and the Ninja Wind is a truly satisfying read for many audiences operating on many levels." —Midwest Book Review

"By the time I finished the first chapter, I was sold: Jet is the first female ninja I've encountered that felt relatable, as though if I stood in her shoes, I'd react just the same way: with some reluctance and fear, slowly growing into strength and determination." —GirlsInCapes.com

"Jet Black and the Ninja Wind is a fun, cool book to read—it is based on a great idea and it delivers breathtaking situations and fight scenes that are expected when reading a ninja novel." —PaperDroids.com

"Jet Black and the Ninja Wind is one of the best novels where the action is based in Japan I've ever read. It is a Young Adult novel about the last living female ninja and her quest to save her tribe and her own life." —Kirainet.com blog

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